How much do you usually take to the World with you

[HHSTigerFan]

I freak about relying on a CC, we only have one and it has a limit of $4500, would be worried I would get down there and the bank would cut our credit limit.. never really worried about that until the last year or so..

 

[hcmomma]

I think it depends on what kind of spender you are and only you know that. We are going to be in Florida 5 nights - 2 in Daytona, 3 in Disney and we have 4 kids 3-11. Our budget is $100/day for everything including food (not including park tickets obviously)! The kids will get 'a' souvenier. For us it is about the experience not how much we can bring home.

 

[ohlas]

normally we do half and half travel checks/cash. 100 for each day we will be traveling... for extra spending and tips, never spend it all but nice to have... and yes we take the cc and the debit cards too and couple of normal checks just incase so this coming trip we will have about 600 travelers and 600 cash..

 

[LisaRN97]

One other suggestion...if your kids are younger. We went last year when our girls were 4 and 3...and they want EVERYTHING they see!! I did some shopping beforehand at the Disney Store when they had their real good sales (BYGOF plush dolls, T-shirts. etc). I hid that from the girls and packed it in our luggage. Each night I left something out with a note from one of the characters and the girls were so excited to get a 'present' from the princesses or from Minnie etc. This way we didn'thave to spend much at all on souviners!!

 

[ReneeA]

We normally go for 8-10 days, have the dining plan and 2 small children. I am a penny pincher by nature, so we don't really spend much OOP. Our last trip we spent $350 in tips, alcoholic beverages, and misc. things like coffee in the am for me.

That total also included 2 $25 giftcards I bought for the kids so they would have their own spending money and could buy what they wanted without going overbudget. It worked great - DD spent her entire amount on candy and small trinkets, and DS saved his until the last day so he could make sure to look around everyday to make sure he got exactly what he wanted.

 

[tink713]

Its just DH and I and we bring $250 for tips (DxDp), $500 souvenirs, and $100for adult beverages.

 

[The V Gang]

We go every year with our four little ones. Last year we went for 10 days. My husband carries the cash and he said we spent between $1200 and $1300. (total guesstimate). The kids get to choose one gift a day (reasonably priced), get their faces painted about 4 times during the tripand ofcourse live off of total junk (hahaha...how easy life would be if I could give in like that year round). We get the dining plan but usually purchase a few snack daily and souvies at the end of the trip.

 

[SOnotLayuh]

We had about 700$ in gift cards on our last trip (DisneyMoon! ). We had a hard time spending it all - there just wasn't that much that we wanted/needed.

 

[AmandaLee]

Does AAA charge for this??? I looked on their website a few months ago and never saw it.. With the dining plan, I was thinking about $1000 on giftcards and then a few hundred more in cash for our 11 nights at Disney and 2 nights at the beach..

If your school or church or civic organization participates with the "Scrip" program, the visa prepaid cards do not have an activation fee...and you get to donate a part of the $ to the organization

 

[drmommy]

We usually stay about 7 days and do the dining plan, and spend about $250 in tips (cash) and allott $100 a day on our debit card...so about $1000?

 

[jayally]

We are doing the dining plan, universal and cruise but I plan on bringing $100 a day for our 12 day trip. Last trip I did not spend it all but it felt good to know I had enough to do whatever we wanted and not feel like I needed to budget. I do watch the pennies but we let ourselves go a bit. That's what vacations are for! I save change for a year and that is what I use as spending money. I am hoping to have money left this time to put a cash deposit on the Disney Dream while onboard our DCL.

 

[jodim]

I'm glad you asked this, because I have been wondering too.

We are a family of 7 going. We have the Dining Plan (1 cs, 1 ts & 1 snack).

We ordered each of the kids a $50.00 Disney Gift Card through their school's SCRIP program, and that's all I'm giving them for their spending. (not including snacks) They can earn more $ if they want it.

I think I'm going to allocate $100.00 daily for us to spend, and an additional $500.00 for our trip down (we're driving) and the days we're going to the beach.

If I get the AAA card and it's lost, will they cancel card & re-issue one?

 

[minnie1928]

Wow! I'm really surprised at the amount of cash that people take to WDW. We take about $150 for cash tips (ME driver) and for small snacks at the parks. The rest goes on a credit card. I take one, my DH takes a different one. Only once did we have a problem...Chase flagged my card because I was out of my normal area, but guest services let me call Chase and it was all straightened out in a few minutes.

I personally find that I spend more if I have cash in my pocket burning a hole.

 

[apnep]

I think it depends on what kind of spender you are and only you know that. We are going to be in Florida 5 nights - 2 in Daytona, 3 in Disney and we have 4 kids 3-11. Our budget is $100/day for everything including food (not including park tickets obviously)! The kids will get 'a' souvenier. For us it is about the experience not how much we can bring home.

hcmomma,
Thank you! I am with you. Some of the budgets sound a little out there for me. We are a family of five and will be at Disney for 5 nights. We got the Disney gift card and will be using that for food and souveniers. The kids will have money to get a shirt and a little trinket. I agree, for us it is about the experience not the stuff.

Angela